740.0011 European War 1939/27586: Telegram
The Ambassador in Brazil (Caffery) to the Secretary of State
[Received 9:30 p.m.]
463. For the Under Secretary. My telegram 400 [401?] January 26, 4 p.m. President Vargas with two aides, Admiral Beauregard,1 and I went with Admiral Ingram2 by plane to Natal where we arrived Wednesday evening. We proceeded at once to the destroyer Jouett where we stayed the night. No one at Natal knew that President Vargas was there nor indeed anything of what was going on. It was easy to keep the secret at Rio de Janeiro because it was generally [Page 655] believed that President Vargas was at São Paulo where [he] had remained after the festivities in connection with the anniversary of the founding of the city on account of his son’s coming down with infantile paralysis.
President Roosevelt arrived at 8:00 Thursday morning and proceeded to the destroyer Humboldt where he remained the day and night.
I had a pertinent conversation with President Roosevelt before he saw President Vargas who came to the Humboldt at noon. President Roosevelt had a luncheon party in his honor after which we proceeded to visit the American and Brazilian Air, Army and Navy installations. Only at that time were President Vargas’ authorities notified of his presence. The two Presidents were recognized by a good many people on the streets and a good many of the respective armed forces. We returned to the Humboldt for dinner where the two Presidents, Harry Hopkins3 and I talked over a number of things of which I shall tell you in a separate telegram.4 At that time a joint communique was agreed upon as well as a separate statement by President Roosevelt6 which is to be released for the tomorrow morning’s papers.
The meeting was eminently successful from all points of view.